One girl's love affair with all things wonderful.

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Getting A Little Bit Artsy.

One of the things I love so much about living in a city like Austin is the never-ending list of things to do. And the fact that it’s never the same things either – there is always something new and exciting going on in this city (and a lot of regular favorites as well) to keep me totally engaged and interested every weekend. Take this weekend for example – I ventured literally just down the street from my house over to Vuka, which is this incredibly cool coworking space off South 1st, to attend the Austin Handmade Arts Market. If you’ve never been to the Austin Handmade Arts Market, I definitely suggest you check it out sometime. Established just this year, the Handmade Arts Market is an indoor market where local artists sell unique, handmade goods – it’s a little like the bi-annual Pecan Street Festival on a much (much) smaller, more intimate scale.

The Austin Handmade Arts Market occurs on the second weekend of every month, and has a list of 45+ rotating vendors that come set-up shop. This time, there were about 12 vendors, selling a variety of so many interesting things. I saw beautifully crafted, hand-stitched leather clutches and handbags by Sabbatical Arts, intricate and delicate jewelry from Magpie’s Trick, incredibly unique lights constructed from gourds by Le Gourd on Blue, and more! Everything was great (take a look at the images below if you don’t believe me), but there were two vendors whose work really caught my eye – the fabulous design work of I Love Indigo and Loggerhead Creations.

Let’s start with Loggerhead Creations. Owner Kris Martins creates these custom glass terrariums that house rootless plants, which until yesterday, I didn’t even know existed, but they were really cool! I spent about eight minutes just staring at the various options, mentally picturing where each one would fit in my apartment. In the end I decided not to buy one because even my adorable little succulent that the plant store assured me required “almost no care”, is struggling to survive under my care, so I didn’t want to risk killing another plant, especially one that is housed in such awesome digs. But, I really want a hanging terrarium in my apartment now (who knew?), so chances are I’ll be buying one from Loggerhead Creations sometime soon.

And then there was I Love Indigo. To say that I really do love indigo now is kind of an understatement – I think I’ve fallen head over heels. I went to the Austin Handmade Arts Market with Candice, and we probably spent a good 30 minutes in this vendor’s space. I just couldn’t leave. Everything about her store made me so happy. Debra King-Isaacs, the owner of I Love Indigo, explained to us that she reclaims wood from various places around Texas (old schools, farmhouses, etc.) and breathes new life into it by turning the wood into a beautiful piece of art. Not only did I love the work itself (I’m still toying between three or four different pieces that I want to get), but I was so into the stories behind each of the pieces. Debra could tell you where each piece of wood or tin came from, and included a great little message to accompany each piece (who doesn’t love a good story, right?). Candice left with an amazing milk can turned magnet board from I Love Indigo’s collection, and I couldn’t be more jealous. If I had just a little more space in my miniature apartment, that milk can would have been mine – it’s beautiful and so unique:

Take a look at some of my favorites pieces from the Austin Handmade Arts Festival, then stay tuned later this week to hear about the jewelry making class that Candice and I attended while at the Market. Also, the next Austin Handmade Arts Market should be taking place July 13-14 (and you should be there), but go ahead and Like them on Facebook to stay up-to-date with all the market’s info in the meantime.